Relationship of Education Level to Capabilities and Attitudes of Young Enlisted Men.

Melching, William H.; And Others

The objective of this research was to determine the feasibility of developing a functionally oriented General Educational Development (GED) program. To obtain information about problems of adaptation common to undereducated men, and to obtain information about knowledges and skills such men may not have, an achievement test/attitude questionnaire was administered to a large group of enlisted men. The instrument was designed to assess men's attitudes and skills with respect to financial, health, insurance, legal, and interpersonal problems. Men who took the test ranged in education level from less than 8 years to over 16 years. Higher educated men performed significantly better on the achievement test than did lower educated men, but high school dropouts (education level 9-11 years) consistently scored lowest of all. When attitude scale items were categorized as reflecting good vs. poor attitudes, poor attitudes decreased as education level rose. The results showed a strong correlation between errors on the achievement test and percentage of poor attitudes. (Author)